SAN ANTONIO – The Federal Trade Commission issued a 129-page study showing how media companies are failing to protect teenagers from targeted advertising and online dangers.
The report examined nine social media companies and video streaming services to assess how they used users’ information. It found that the companies were engaged in extensive surveillance of their users.
The most troubling part of the report, according to FTC attorney Jacqueline Ford, is that teenagers’ accounts were treated like adult accounts, exposing them to potential dangers.
“We found that companies failed to adequately protect children and teens, especially teens who aren’t protected by federal legislation that protects children’s privacy online. Teens are treated the same as adult users,” Ford said. “There’s almost no restrictions on teen accounts, and their personal information is collected from them, just the same as with adults,” she said.
Ford said there are steps that parents can take to limit how much information social media …